Chapter 477

Usakabe Saiki went out to play, but Bourbon couldn't stay idle.

During this time, the Japanese police, having received the news, finally located Curaçao and discovered that she had indeed lost her memory. After a simple examination at the hospital, they found that there were some problems with the part of her brain related to memory.

Having learned about Curaçao's sudden, severe headache that forced her to be taken to the hospital, Kazami Yuya quickly reported this to Furuya Rei.

Even without a professional perspective, based solely on his experience watching movies, Furuya Rei could conclude that "the key to regaining her memories lies in the place that previously caused her headaches."

However, Rei Furuya is not in a hurry to restore Curaçao's memories.

The fake list has been sent out, and the person is in the hands of the police. We can take our time to recover their memory and conduct interrogations later. After all, the organization is probably looking for Curaçao, so there's no need to go out at this time, as it would be easy to be discovered.

As a result, less than half an hour after Furuya Rei gave the order for his subordinates to transfer Curaçao to a safe place for detention, his superior contacted him, saying that the higher-ups wanted Curaçao to regain his memory as soon as possible and to send Curaçao back to the Toto Aquarium immediately.

Rei Furuya feels ridiculous. Are you guys really that short of a day or two?

"What's the reason?"

His direct superior, Heiwa Kuroda, replied: "One reason is that, according to the assessment of 'professionals,' it is recommended to press the attack while the momentum is still strong. If we delay, even a return visit might not be effective. Another reason is... the United States has applied for the extradition of Curaçao because Curaçao is a U.S. citizen. We need to get as much information as possible before handing her over to the FBI. We must keep the intelligence in our own hands and not let the United States benefit from it."

Jianggu Ling: "???"

What the hell!

"How did the US know we captured Curaçao? And what about the US citizenship? Was it a temporary forgery? No, Curaçao's citizenship might have been fake all along..."

"I don't know, maybe it's based on the police's actions last night and today?" Kuroda Hyōe was also annoyed that this topic suddenly popped up out of nowhere.

Rei Furuya remained silent for a while, neither saying he would obey orders nor how he would solve the problem.

There was one sentence that kept lingering in his mind, and he felt uncomfortable if he didn't say it.

Kuroda asked curiously, "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking."

Rei Furuya finally couldn't help but slowly say, "The guy who suggested doing this, could he be an undercover agent?"

That feels so good, you finally said it! Does Usaku Saiki usually have such a great time?

Kuroda Hyōe: "...Those are high-ranking officials."

“I also suggest that the higher-ups investigate. Even if he’s not an undercover agent, he might have been bribed.” Rei Furuya pondered. “The reason given for bringing up Americans and the FBI is like why they want to remove Curaçao from the area protected by the Public Security Bureau and put her in the more chaotic Toto Aquarium. I suspect they have ulterior motives.”

No matter how reasonable the reasons may seem, even if it sounds like it's all America's fault, if something happens to Curaçao on the way to the Tokyo Aquarium, the organization will still benefit.

Kuroda Hyōe understood this principle.

In Japan, where hierarchical systems are prevalent, subordinates are not allowed to criticize their superiors. Even if a superior asks a subordinate to bark like a dog, 60% of Japanese corporate slaves will actually bark. Therefore, even Kuroda Hyōe would find it difficult to refuse orders from higher-ups.

When he received the order, Kuroda Hyōe really wanted to yell at the amateur and tell him to get out...

For a high-ranking official to be so ignorant is excessive. However, his colleagues advised him that his position might be hereditary, so it was understandable.

Kuroda Hyōe: "..."

I wasn't comforted at all; I just felt that Japan was doomed.

The world is a huge makeshift operation.

So it's not impossible that such a person could be bribed or have something on their hands by the organization.

Because of the secrecy surrounding undercover work, Rei Furuya was only responsible to him, so those above him didn't know who the undercover agents were. Also, due to the complex internal relationships within the Public Security Bureau, even if an undercover agent wanted to do something, they would have to find a pretext, just like the higher-ups did this time. This effectively protected Rei Furuya's undercover career.

But since there seems to be a problem, an investigation is still necessary, even if Furuya Rei doesn't mention it.

"I understand," Kuroda Hyōe said calmly, "but for now, we can only follow orders from above."

Rei Furuya sighed: "Oh well, at worst, Curaçao will be rescued by the organization, just like before..."

If you can catch fish this way, then it's barely acceptable.

With Furuya Rei's tacit approval, after some interrogation, the Japanese police put Curaçao back in the car, intending to take her back to the Tokyo Aquarium.

Despite her sullen attitude, Vermouth still did some symbolic work and promptly communicated with Gin: "As you said, they're going to the Toto Aquarium."

Gin responded, then said to Chianti and Cohen, who had finally finished their work and returned to Japan, "Get ready, we're going to use that this time."

"That?" Although Chianti didn't get along with Gin, she was the first to understand what Gin was talking about, because she was the one who was in charge of obtaining "that" back then. "Are you sure? That's a big guy! Capturing Curaçao requires such a big commotion, you... you really don't learn your lesson at all!"

Gin, who had been given the cold shoulder by the Boss for being too arrogant, darkened his face: "...This is Rum's order."

"Rum, that's alright now." Chianti laughed excitedly, "I haven't used it much since I got it back!"

Vodka moved his lips, but said nothing.

Why is it that Rum can put on a big show without any problems, but his older brother can't?! Are you people discriminating against the older brother?!

However, before he could speak, he suddenly remembered that Chianti and Cohen had both been recruited into the organization by Potts, so he silently shut up.

Sigh, it's perfectly normal for them to side with Potts. At least this time Chianti didn't criticize his boss or accuse him of being an undercover agent or anything. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, really. When they used to go on missions together, Chianti was always spouting nonsense, but now that they've been working together for a while, his attitude is much better.

...The thought of Potts suddenly made Vodka uneasy.

"Brother, what about Potts? Hasn't he done anything else?"

With such a big commotion, Botnis only made a brief appearance on the phone during a meeting, and then remained completely silent. Is this reasonable?!

It was eerily quiet.

Gin paused for a moment after hearing Vodka's words, then his attitude turned somewhat harsh: "...If you're so eager to know, why don't you call him?"

Vodka sensed Gin's displeasure and meekly shut his mouth.

But, brother! Potts isn't something that disappears just because I don't mention it!!!

Appearing briefly and then disappearing is more terrifying than never appearing at all!

So, what is Usaku Saiki doing at this moment?

He played at the Toto Aquarium with Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki.

The Toto Aquarium has an investment from the Suzuki family, and with Sonoko Suzuki in charge, many attractions don't require queuing. Moreover, although it's called an aquarium, it's actually quite similar to an amusement park, with many rides and good food. Usui Saiki was very happy to come after receiving the invitation.

Because Usuiba Saiki became a close friend to these high school girls, they didn't shy away from talking about him, especially when Suzuki Sonoko mentioned Kudo Shinichi, she particularly hoped that Usuiba Saiki could join in.

"I asked Ran to call Shinichi to see if he could come to the aquarium, but she absolutely refused," Sonoko Suzuki said to Saiki Usaba. "Usaba-nii, you should try to persuade her too! She's not proactive at all, and it's been so long since she's seen Shinichi."

“I’m afraid of bothering him…” Ran Mouri explained, “He’s always so busy.”

Bo Ye Zaiji coughed and said, "Sonoko is right. Ran, just make a call. If he's going to break up with you just because you made a call, then you're better off without him! No matter how busy you are, can you be so busy that you can't even answer a phone call?"

So, encouraged by Sonoko Suzuki and Saiki Usuba, Ran Mouri mustered up her courage and called Shinichi Kudo.

Conan Edogawa, who was busy at work, put on a mask of pain as soon as he saw the phone call.

He's really busy right now! But I can't just ignore him...

"Xiao Lan, what's wrong?"

Hearing Shinichi Kudo's urgent tone on the other end of the phone, Ran Mouri felt a surge of guilt: "I'm sorry, did I bother you? Actually, Sonoko, Usui-nii, and I are at the Tokyo Aquarium. If you..."

Usoppei listened to the phone call and couldn't help but sigh. If he hadn't known everything, he would have thought that Shinichi Kudo was some kind of scumbag. He usually disappeared, but now he was so impatient when his girlfriend called. It was all very strange.

Before Ran Mouri could finish speaking, Shinichi Kudo hung up the phone.

"...Why do I feel like Shinichi is at the aquarium too?" Ran Mouri recalled the voice on the other end of the phone before it ended. "I think I heard the aquarium's announcement on his end as well..."

Bo Yezaki said quietly, "So he was in such a hurry to hang up the phone because he was with someone else and was afraid you would find out."

Sonoko Suzuki: "..."

She usually talks badly about Shinichi Kudo, but it's really nothing serious. Her main purpose is to see Ran Mouri blush. But Usopp-san, don't try to create anxiety for her!

Although Ran Mouri believed that Shinichi Kudo wouldn't cheat on her, the fact that he seemed to be in the same place but was hiding from her still made her feel uneasy.

"...Bo Ye-ge," Ran Mouri asked sadly, "is he really here?"

Usakata sighed, "I was just saying it offhand... Alright, you guys go ahead and have fun. I'll go wander around the neighborhood and see where Shinichi Kudo might be.

At this point, Usaku Saiki seemed like a reliable detective again.

Realizing the situation was dire and in a life-or-death race, Conan Edogawa soon received a call from Saiki Usaba.

"Where are you? Who's with you? Tell the truth! Otherwise, you'll know what's going to happen when Xiaolan breaks up with you!"

Conan Edogawa nearly broke down: "Usui-nii! I'm really busy here, please don't make things worse, okay?"

"Are you really that busy?" Usakabe Saiki's tone turned serious. "Is there anything I can help with?"

Conan Edogawa paused for a moment: "...Usui-nii, can you please not be so serious all of a sudden? It's scary."

Before, he was always involved in police work or undercover operations, but he never seemed serious. Now that he's suddenly serious, it feels like if he's not facing an apocalyptic crisis, then he's wasting his seriousness!